Canapés for the Marlowe Theatre

Happy Birthday Marlowe Theatre!

It feels like it’s been there longer, but today marks 10 years since the new Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury first opened its doors.  To celebrate the occasion, they held a drinks reception for all their sponsors and supporters and they asked me if I would make a few simple canapés to accompany the Champagne.

The finished crostini: basil pesto and mozzarella and sun dried tomato pesto and mixed chargrilled peppers

The photos show a bit of the process from raw ingredients bought this morning to finished canapés.  As I always do, I made all the component parts at home and then transported them to the venue to be assembled in situ.  Canapés don’t do well if they have to sit around for too long, so making them as close to consumption as possible is optimum.

On arrival at the Marlowe, I had to make my way to the stage door which was exciting.  I drove through the big security gates to the back of the theatre and was admitted by a member of the stage door team and given a lanyard.  What is it about a lanyard that suddenly makes you feel special and important?!  Or is that just me?  (I wore it the whole time, even though it got in the way of canapé production at times!)

I used some of my palm leaf trays which I love.  Each one is different, so they are interesting to look at, but what’s so great about them is that they can be used again or composted.  Brilliant!  To start with, I laid out all the canapé bases on the trays.  At this stage they look really boring and beige, but then the fun starts with the addition of all the other components and, layer by layer, they start to come alive.  Once I’d assembled the 3 varieties of canapés and set them out on the palm leaf trays, I decided to have a sneaky peak at where they would be served and discovered that the reception was being held on the actual stage!  Very fitting.  This was a delivery-only job as the Marlowe has its own staff for serving food and drinks, so my work was done, but it was great to be a part of the celebration.

Canapés for the Marlowe Theatre Gallery